Colonel Rosemary Hogan, An Airman's Story
Colonel Rosemary Hogan, An Airman's Story
Colonel Rosemary Hogan was born on March 13, 1912, in Ahpeatone, Oklahoma. An exceptional student, she graduated as her class valedictorian and earned a nursing scholarship, setting her on a professional path defined by discipline, academic excellence, and service.
She enlisted in the United States Army in 1936 and served at stateside posts until the fall of 1941, when she was transferred to the Philippines as tensions in the Pacific escalated toward war. There, she served in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps during the opening months of World War II.
As Japanese forces advanced, Army leadership repeatedly attempted to relocate medical facilities farther inland. Despite these efforts, the hospitals remained within reach of enemy attacks. In March 1942, Colonel Hogan was wounded when the hospital came under fire, continuing her duties even as conditions deteriorated rapidly.
By April 1942, with the fall of Bataan and Corregidor, Hogan and the remaining nurses on the islands were captured by enemy forces and imprisoned at the Santo Tomas Internment Camp in Manila. Along with her fellow nurses, later remembered collectively as the Angels of Bataan and Corregidor, she endured years of captivity marked by hunger, disease, and uncertainty.
Colonel Hogan remained a prisoner of war until liberation in 1945. Following her release and a period of recuperation, she chose not to leave military service. Instead, she transferred to the newly established United States Air Force, continuing her career in uniform and serving in a number of senior nursing roles, including assignments as Chief Nurse and a posting with Langley’s Tactical Command.
After decades of service spanning two branches and one of the most harrowing episodes endured by American medical personnel, Colonel Rosemary Hogan retired to San Antonio, Texas.
She died on June 24, 1964, and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Her legacy is inseparable from the nurses who held the line with compassion rather than weapons—women who proved that courage can take the form of care, endurance, and quiet resolve under captivity.
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About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life
She shares her journeys at Take the Back Roads, explores new reads at Rite of Fancy, and highlights U.S. military biographies at Everyday Patriot.
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